Questions of Origin

Vikings, Vinland, and the veracity of a map

Scientists lined up on opposing sides of a decades-old controversy this month, after the publication of two new studies concerning the authenticity of one of the world's most famous maps. If it's not a forgery, the Vinland Map contains the first known cartographic representation of the Americas. The world map, which surfaced in the 1950s, identifies a region called Vinland that resembles coastal Canada. Latin text on the map describes Vinland's discovery by the Vikings.

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